Category Archives: Pastoral Letter

April 1, 2021 · 7:00 am

Always a Blessed Easter

CHRIST’S DESCENT INTO HELL, Nun Kassiane at the Holy Monastery of the Annunciation, at Patmos island.

I want to thank the many people that reached out to me or prayed for me and my family at the time of my mother’s death. Her death was not expected, and as can often prove the case, it was a difficult experience on many different levels. As I write, the trees in my yard are about to burst forth with green. Flowers are poking through the ground. Holy Week and Easter lie before us. I cannot explain why God allows suffering and death, but I trust the signs of springtime around us are herald signs of what is yet to come. We know from scripture – and perhaps upon reflection about the grace active in our own lives – that God has the power to bring healing from sorrow and new life from death. God is only love, and Jesus promises that we who believe will share in his resurrection joy. With the losses in my life and in the lives of many around me, both large and small, we might be tempted to see only struggle. Yet, a resurrection day was to come for Jesus beyond his cross. He promises that a resurrection day will come for us all. It has already begun through faith. I sincerely wish you a hope-filled Easter. Jesus is risen. He is risen indeed. I pray we all see the joy and peace of Jesus – even if for a moment we must see through tears in our eyes.

Peace be with you, and thank you, for walking with me toward Resurrection Day.

Pastor Lou

Image: Artwork available on etsy.com, ReligiousIconsGR retains all rights to the above image and icon. I am not associated with the seller and do not receive any benefits from sharing this icon. Order at your own risk.

Originally published in the April newsletter of Christ Lutheran Church, Fredericksburg, VA.

© 2021 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author.

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

January 26, 2021 · 8:57 pm

Sleep well, dear Church

I recently read an article that indicated more than half the population has experienced sleep disruption due to the pandemic, protest violence, economic fears and more. And this finding came before the recent events at the Capitol! Most certainly, we tend to be a stressed, fearful and tired people these days. (And if statistics prove true, I suppose I do not really need to tell you that.)

So, where can we find rest? How is hope and peace possible during these times? I often start with a promise made by Jesus, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come (Matthew 24:6).” To some, this might sound like a threat, but with open hearts, we hear these words with joy. Whatever happens today or tomorrow, the end will come. Nothing including our pain will last forever. We are due for an end with no ending; an eternal joy made complete. For the end Jesus speaks of is a new heaven, new earth, and our eternal, perfect life with him.

It won’t be easy as we wait for that day. I can’t tell you exactly what tomorrow will bring, but I know Jesus is already there in the future waiting to welcome us. And so, when I get anxious or afraid, that is who I turn to through scripture, songs of faith, and prayer. When I do so, I taste peace. I feel like I can stare down death in its face. It must be a bit like the Transfiguration experience of long ago. To be honest, I don’t want to leave those moments where grace breaks through. I want to escape the world and all its difficulties; to stay. Yet I know like the first Apostles, I cannot stay up on that mountain. I have work to do down below. The days of lasting peace are yet to come.

Through such spiritual disciplines, I can draw strength for my day from the Water of Life. I am reminded that I am not alone in any pain or my work, and my hope will not disappoint. Indeed, it helps change how I see my place in the world, as I find hope blooming like spring. I remain in communion with others of the Church. Despite all the rumors and threats always around us, we are never alone in seeking to watch, and wait, and love. Creation itself “waits with eager longing” (Romans 8:19-23).

As humans, we might wish to keep the pain of life far away, but what kind of life would that be? Jesus’ current work is in the valley. For now, anyway, that is perhaps where we might just need to be – with him – in order to serve and grow. And no matter our situation, others stuck in the valley need our loving witness, support, and prayer as well.

When a child, I used to pray for God to keep me as I slept. I trusted then that Jesus heard such prayers. Despite the angry adult voices and threats around us, he still does. God is only love, and it is God that loves us in our worry, sadness or joy. So sleep well, dear Church. Try to close your eyes and rest easy in the arms of Christ, even if you can only muster it for a few moments. For I find wisdom in what Victor Hugo is reported to have once observed:

“Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake.”

This pastoral letter was originally published in Christ Lutheran Church’s February 2021 newsletter.

Image by Cdd20 on Pixaby. Used by permission.

© 2020 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author.

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

December 3, 2020 · 9:39 pm

Finding Christmas in 2020

Photo by Alexas_Fotos on Pixaby. Used by permission.

During the pandemic of 2020, it seems many people are being tempted to put our 2020 goggles on (rather than see the world with 20/20 vision) as we look toward the holiday season, especially Christmas. “There won’t be much to Christmas this year.” “Christmas won’t be like we remember it.” Some have wondered out loud if there will be any Christmas at all!

This is very human, but it is not seeing things very clearly. Among the greatest biblical truths regarding Christmas, we do not find feasts, bright colored lights, and gifts wrapped in bows. We find Jesus who came to us as a vulnerable babe to share our lot. In this incarnate form, he would grow up to face emotional wounds, isolation, sickness, physical suffering, and death. Members of his own family would reject him, at least for a time. In other words, he became fully human in a fallen world – just like us.

Yes, suffering was part of Christ’s experience, so it remains an important part of the Christmas story. A baby is born in abject poverty in unsanitary conditions. His parents are so poor, all he can be dressed in are bands of cloth. He is surrounded by threats: war and revolution, plagues, and early death accepted as a norm. His mother and father flee with their child to avoid assassination. A tyrant king sends his troops to kill innocent babes and toddlers in the insane hope of stopping God’s will. This is Christmas too.

And yet thanks to scripture, carols, family and community traditions over the years, we know that this is not the full story. To only focus on the negative would be like telling ourselves a lie. We hear angels come to announce good news of great joy for us amidst any suffering. We see poor and marginalized shepherds find hope in the Christ child. It is a hope so bursting with possibility, they cannot help but share it despite (or perhaps because of) the exceedingly difficult lives they share with their families and neighbors. We also learn how God protects those God loves. Yes, Jesus and his parents are protected, but we are told our God desires to offer that same protection and peace to all the earth. Amidst all the frightening and sad things, God’s loving will remains. Jesus has come for our good – to ultimately crush suffering, sin and death – and nothing will stop God’s will…not even our own doubts and fears.

A Spanish priest poetically answered the question of “Will there be a Christmas?” in this way:

Will there be Christmas? Of course! More silent and with more depth. More like unto the first one, when Jesus was born in solitude. Without many lights on earth, but with the star of Bethlehem shining on paths of life in its immensity. Without colossal royal processions, but with the humility of feeling as if we are shepherds, young and old, seeking the Truth. Without big tables and with bitter absences, but with the presence of a God who will fill everything.

Merry Christmas, dear Church. Let nothing trouble us, for Christ is here.

For the full text of Javier Leoz’s poem, read this article: https://aleteia.org/2020/11/13/pope-calls-spanish-priest-to-congratulate-him-for-will-there-be-christmas-reflection/

 This pastoral letter was originally published in Christ Lutheran Church’s December 2020 newsletter.

© 2020 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author.

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter, Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

November 24, 2020 · 9:21 pm

Trust begins our Thanksgiving journey

Image from Pixaby. Used by permission.

Whenever someone is baptized, we gather in community (or at least a subset of our local community and the universal Church) to remember. We recall promises our Triune God makes to each of us every day, not only to the newly baptized, and we give thanks for the spiritual gifts we are all given for free. During the ritual, we proclaim a list of sorts for all to hear enumerating when God has used ordinary people and ordinary things like water to do miracles.

As ordinary people baptized and set free, we are then sent out in hope – an expectant, miraculous, mysterious body connected through the Holy Spirit – to separate places and spaces where God needs us to be. Wherever this road takes us, alone or with others, we are invited to reflect God’s light in what can prove a dark land. We find ourselves on a sacred journey, not necessarily and easy one.

Under persecution like the early Church or during times of pandemic, famine, economic crisis, or war as with any of the saints before us, our loving God remains the same, and we remain God’s beloved. As uncertain or hard as it might be to answer God’s call today, it is our time and place to be and remember that we are the Church. No one and nothing can ultimately stand against us with God on our side.

Much as God swore to Joshua after the death of Moses, God speaks to us. “I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous…” (Joshua 1). It is our time to remember and trust. It is we who are now asked to help lead others to hope and light in the Lord. With God’s boundless love and help, we can give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) in both word and deed. And what if we struggle to see the light ourselves? Jesus promises to somehow come to us. With all the Church throughout time, we can watch and wait, for deliverance – our joy is at hand and will be made complete. I know that such trust can be hard, but trust is the start of any thanksgiving journey.

This week, I challenge all of us to remember who God is. Scripture proclaims God is only love and that God loves and delights in us. We are never defined by our circumstances or our failures. We are defined by God who spoke us into being and calls us to this time and place. All is well with us. As hard or lonely or unusual as this year’s Thanksgiving holiday might prove, we remain God’s people. We can choose to give thanks. Wherever we are, however we find ourselves, God will never cast us aside. Indeed, Jesus and the Spirit have reached out to us to gather us in and lead us home. In that alone, we can begin to discover joy and peace.

Originally published in The Hub, a weekly email of Christ Lutheran Church, Fredericksburg, VA.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations for this article are from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) translation.

© 2020 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author.

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

November 10, 2020 · 7:00 am

Be still this season

Photo by Valiphotos on Pixaby. Used by Permission.

With the excitement of our seven CLC youth confirmed on Reformation Sunday and our return to worship in the sanctuary on All Saints Day, we have many reasons to thank and honor God. But, as Martin Luther reminds us, works cannot on their own do this – “only faith of the heart can.”

As the year gets darker around us, let us look to the light which is Christ and welcome him by the warm hearth of our heart with joy. How? Perhaps we can better cooperate with the grace reaching out to us. Take some time to meditate on the scripture of the day. Participate in book studies and group discussions about faith. Integrate a discipline of prayer into your daily life. Seek to learn more about Jesus, not just as an historical oddity or mythic figure, but as he is. All that he has done, he has done in love for you.

If we don’t know the one who loves us, how can we welcome him well? How can we be sure that we aren’t worshipping an image of Jesus (one of our own making) rather than the resurrected Son of the Living God? Jesus wants to be known in our lives in an intimate way. He wants to reveal himself as much as he did for the disciples over a meal on the road to Emmaus. As with Paul, only Jesus can remove the scales from our eyes.

Like any relationship, spending time with the one we love and who loves us matters. Getting to know them and our taking the risk to become vulnerable opens us up to one another. There is so much more to learn about God’s great love for us, but it isn’t possible just through doing or thinking. We are asked to abide in Jesus. Take some time to be still this season – intentionally waiting for Jesus to speak – so that you will know all the more that he is truly your God.

This pastoral letter was originally published in Christ Lutheran Church’s October 2020 newsletter.

© 2020 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author. 

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

September 29, 2020 · 9:28 pm

Root of Bitterness or Blessing?

Image source: ykaiavu on pixaby.com

“Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble, and through it many become defiled.” Hebrews 12:14-15

As I write this, it seems a bitter time. Some suggest the fall will see a spike in pandemic cases. Others fear or argue over the nomination process for the Supreme Court. There’s concern about the vitality of the economy, protests, violence, corruption and crime. The list could go on, but will listing out all that is wrong with our fallen world help us? In my experience no, and I think scripture agrees.

If we look at the world, ourselves, or others and only see the bad, we are making a mistake. I have done that in my past, and it led me into a dark and lonely place. It fractured my relationships. It might be human, but sin is very human too. Even in Martin Luther’s time, it was a “common evil plague that every one prefers hearing evil to hearing good of his neighbor; and although we ourselves are so bad that we cannot suffer that any one should say anything bad about us, but everyone would much rather that all the world should speak of him in terms of gold, yet we cannot bear that the best is spoken about others.” He challenged believers to: think the best of people (show them compassion and grace); to consider why in their woundedness they might be acting or speaking as they are (practice empathy); to not rush in judging (where we might fall into sin that is greater, acting as if we are God). Simply put, if we see the world in simple terms of clear good and evil, our vision is impaired. We are the one’s who choose to wound ourselves. Then like a sickness, anger, cynicism and sin can and will most certainly spread to others.

Sometimes, I find it hard not to get angry at others. Yet, when I struggle, I try to remember the warnings and encouragement of scripture and our Lutheran confessions. “We love because God loved us first.” If Jesus had not risen from the dead, if he did not promise to return, if he hadn’t said that there would be times of trial, fear and even persecution, but we would be and are ok, perhaps then scorn might be justified. Instead, we are asked to remember that Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. He’s the anchor we can trust in during any storm. Jesus has already made us victors over sin, death and the devil, and we can choose to love – love even those that don’t deserve it or love us back – no matter what happens because he loves us.

Now, I’m not saying consequences or tough actions are never needed. I’m asking, as I ask myself, “Why are we doing what we are doing? How does it reflect Christ’s own love for us?” We need not act like “everyone else.” We are to be in this world but not of it, and that’s a tough spot to be in. Yet it remains true, that we are baptized. We are forgiven and loved. We are empowered by the Spirit to be ambassadors for Christ’s kingdom no matter what political winds blow. Just as evil can spread person to person, so can the justice, peace and love of God. What will we choose to be part of in this world – a root of bitterness or blessing?

Yes, people can prove difficult, ignorant, or worse. I can’t deny it. Yet, they are only human after all. And the world can be unfair, but so is God’s grace. Despite all the storms raging around us, we have been chosen to be like the first bow God put down in the sky declaring a beautiful and everlasting peace.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations for this article are from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) translation.

This pastoral letter was originally published in Christ Lutheran Church’s October 2020 newsletter.

© 2020 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author. 

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , ,

September 29, 2020 · 7:20 pm

The Door’s Open

“To preach Christ is to feed the soul, to justify it, to set it free, and to save it, if it believes the preaching.” – Martin Luther

This fall, the ELCA marks the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s early important work, The Freedom of a Christian (also known as On Christian Liberty and other similar names), and we will remember it as well at Christ Lutheran. Why? Well, through this early work, Martin Luther decisively influenced the entire Protestant movement in all its forms. As the theologian Dietrich Oppen noted, “As such, it is one of the great documents of world history, a work which opened doors to the future, first in Luther’s time and still in our own.”

Starting on Thursday, September 10, at 10:00 am, join me as we journey through this important work anew or for the first time. Our sessions will help us better understand the mystery of Christ, especially Christ’s work in and through our daily lives. Participants will be provided a pdf copy of the text (which can be printed out or read electronically), but the text is also widely available for purchase if you prefer. A special anniversary study guide will also be provided. Recognizing both the importance of this work and busy schedules, sessions will be recorded and posted on our private Facebook group, but the sessions’ quality and impact will improve if you make an effort to attend together live – willing to share both your faith and questions about faith with others. Don’t worry if you can’t make every session, as always, just come as you can.

In these challenging times amidst much fear for the future, I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to trust in Christ’s saving, active love for each of us and our world. Like the earliest disciples, we are called to certainly watch and pray, but we are also asked to be Christ in the world. God has a purpose for you and I to fulfill in this time and this place as unlikely as that might seem to us. Doubts may grow strong, but they are never stronger than Christ’s love for us or his purpose.

My hope remains that – whether you find yourself out in the world or find yourself restricted to serving Christ’s Church from home – these sessions bless you to be a blessing. I also pray that they nurture a joyful, certain hope to be found in our shared future as children of God. You and I have been set free for a purpose, and so as my friend and spiritual mentor Br. Roger of Taizé once wrote, “Set out, forward, one step at a time, from doubt toward faith, not worrying about the impossible ahead.” The door has been opened by Christ alone. Let us walk through it together.

I remain in communion with you and love you,

Pastor Lou

For the ELCA’s curriculum and/or a free copy of Martin Luther’s “The Freedom of a Christian” visit elca500.org.

If you have interest in our congregation’s class, please contact me.

© 2020 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author. This letter was first published in Christ Lutheran Church’s September 2020 newsletter.

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

August 19, 2020 · 8:43 pm

God remembers

O give thanks to the Lord, call on his name, make known his deeds among the peoples. Sing to him, sing praises to him, tell of all his wonderful works. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his presence continually. Remember the wonderful works he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of his servant Israel, children of Jacob, his chosen ones. – 1 Chronicles 16:8-13 (NRSV)

After the followers of David defeated their enemies and settled in Jerusalem, David wanted a place for the Lord to live among God’s chosen people. At first, the Ark of the Covenant was brought to a specially prepared tent pitched centrally among them. David’s instructions echoed the formation the Israelites had used under Moses as directed by God to travel through the wilderness. The central placement of the Tent of Meeting was to symbolically remind them that God’s ways must remain central in their individual, familial and communal life.

The Israelites had been through a precarious time, but God had led them this far. More difficulties certainly lay ahead, but they trusted God would continue to lead them. Their vision remained clouded and eclipsed by challenges of many kinds including their own sinfulness. Yet as has always been true for those who trust in God, “for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings” (Malachai 4:2a). No matter the time or place, we are to seek God, give thanks, and try our best to share the light of God’s grace and love as called and able, because God continues to know, claim and love us.

As our own way forward seems currently clouded by pandemic fears, social injustice or unrest, and perhaps other doubts galore, remembering the past faithfulness of God’s love at work in our lives, our family, and within the history of our family of faith can prove helpful. As we have talked about before, among the many words God offers us through scripture, we find the word “remember” to be among those most often used. The same God who loved us and our forebearers of the past, loves us now, and God promises to love us for eternity. The proof? We can find it in God’s steadfast love for us throughout the ages.

Life will be hard, and our way forward remain uncertain at times, but God is with us and at work. We are chosen and claimed, placed in this time and context, to reflect God’s own light while being used to help fulfill God’s plans for all people. Through our faith and baptism, God has forgone a tent or building located in the heart of a community and desires to reside in and work through our hearts instead. God has prepared a place in us because God always remembers us and longs to be with us. More wonderful works, miracles and judgments are surely yet to come. 

Originally published in the July/August 2020 newsletter of Christ Lutheran Church, Fredericksburg, VA.

© 2020 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author.

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , ,

August 29, 2019 · 2:51 pm

Fever vs. Faith: Handling Hot Topics

Bells rang on Sunday, August 25, 2019

As August ends, I am participating in a community worship service and national ringing of church bells. Sunday, August 25, will mark four hundred years since the first Africans arrived by force at Fort Monroe, Virginia. Slavery is a tough subject to address, and when you add the many ongoing sins related to slavery, Jim Crow Laws, segregated communities, and other signs of personal and systemic racism, it becomes even more difficult.

Whether racism or any other hot button issue, it is helpful to remember that forgiveness is already ours. We need not get stuck in shame whether it is our sin, the sin of others or of the world. Nor should we fear acknowledging guilt. Instead, humility calls us forward into a future together with Christ. We who have been reconciled to God through Christ have also been entrusted with a ministry of reconciliation (see 2 Cor. 5: 11-21). We can indeed address hurtful, “hot button” issues without defensiveness or unholy anger.

As election fever rises again and troubles of the world present themselves, I find it helpful to listen more than talk. What is really being said and why? Is my momentary adversary speaking from their own woundedness and therefore wounding me? Sometimes angry people facing compassion and gentleness can be moved toward compassion and gentleness themselves. In speaking, I try to avoid blanket statements, as hot button issues are often multilayered, nuanced and intersect with others. As a flawed human, I might even be wrong, so I try to consider both what I might need to learn and where we might be able to find areas of agreement. Although Lutheran Christians have always been encouraged to engage the world and call authorities to account when necessary, regarding the Eighth Commandment (as Lutheran’s count them, the admonition to avoid bearing false witness), Martin Luther cautions, “We are to fear and love God, so that we do not tell lies about our neighbors, betray or slander them, or destroy their reputations. Instead we are to come to their defense, speak well of them, and interpret everything they do in the best possible light” (Small Catechism).

And then, of course, we have Christ’s own teaching and example, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” Praying for those we oppose might not always result in an observed change in their behaviors, but I always find it brings a change in me – in attitude toward them and the world, in my own general peace, or sometimes in my own repentance. Consider praying before you hit that post button or begin a difficult conversation. Or, just step away, and then come back to address things after some prayer and reflection. It is amazing how the Spirit can give us just the right words.

Like the Psalmist in Psalm 27, “I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” Sometimes that goodness will enter the world through us.

Originally published in the June 2019 newsletter of Christ Lutheran Church, Fredericksburg, VA.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations for this article are from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) translation.

© 2019 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author.

Leave a comment

Filed under Community Life, Pastoral Letter

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

August 14, 2019 · 3:34 pm

So many books

The Hub, August 13, 2019

“So many books, so little time.” Perhaps few know that as well as a pastor! We love and depend upon books even in this digital age for sound theology and ideas for better ministry. Come into any pastor’s office, and you will likely see books on shelves and tables, if not the floor. Today, this clutter has likely spread through electronic versions on their tablet or phone as well. Our lives seem fed by books.

Yet what would happen if the pastor attended to all these other books but moved away from reading scripture daily? As with anyone else, Bible stories will be conflated into cultural understandings rather than scriptural ones. Faith might become challenged if not weaker, and a hunger for meaning, understanding and hope would grow. As with satiating one’s thirst, we need to go back to the well often. We need to hear what scripture really says to us, for as an early Puritan pointed out, “God is still speaking.”

Now certainly, other books have value, as do our many commitments, but through scripture, we encounter our Living God who loves us anew in a special way. Scripture is the norm for teaching and our discernment over all daily matters in our lives. The Spirit can literally touch and reshape our hearts. Martin Luther argued the Word of God has the power to bring about repentance, faith, and salvation. “What pasture is to the beast…the nest for the birds, the stream for fish, the Scriptures are for believing souls,” Luther wrote.

As our community’s children return to their academic studies, let us also return as families and individuals to scripture. Take advantage of the free daily meditation guides in our welcome area. (Perhaps even take the extra step of reading each scriptural citation in full and in their original context.) Challenge yourself to a Bible reading plan based on themes for life or for reading the Bible throughout the year. It is easier than you think. Intentionally dig into scripture when facing decisions or problems, start or end your day. Listen for the Spirit through other’s interpretations that might affirm, challenge or shape your own. (Bible study with a spouse, family, or group is immensely helpful.) Also, engage Sunday’s sermons more deeply by taking notes or talking about the sermon or readings of the day with others afterward. You can also discuss scripture with our Christian tradition and the universal Church as you, just like a good pastor, attend ongoing classes and Bible studies to help you better understand historical and other contexts as well as hear what people of the very diverse past and present have to say.

If you need some direction, please ask Pastor Anne or me. We will be excited to open up the Bible with you. For each time we do, we encounter God’s love anew. And you with your faith (and questions) have something to teach us as well.

Originally published in The Hub, a weekly email of Christ Lutheran Church, Fredericksburg, VA.

© 2019 The Rev. Louis Florio. All content not held under another’s copyright may not be used without permission of the author.

Leave a comment

Filed under Pastoral Letter, Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,